Marriott International expects revenue per available room
(RevPAR) to be down 23% for the first quarter. Roughly 25% of the company’s
7,300-plus hotels remain temporarily closed. 

In a business update issued Tuesday, Marriott said it
“anticipates further hotel closures and erosion in RevPAR performance and does
not expect to see a material improvement” until the spread of the Covid-19
coronavirus slows and lockdown restrictions are lifted.

For the month of March, Marriott’s global RevPAR was down
60%, with North America, Asia Pacific and Europe posting RevPAR declines of
57%, 74% and 71%, respectively. In the Caribbean and Latin America, RevPAR
dropped 57% for the month, while the Middle East and Africa region fell 56%
decline.

In Greater China, where quarantine and travel restrictions
have eased, Marriott said it has seen “steadily improving RevPAR trends through
March and into April.” The company currently has less than 20 hotels still
shuttered in the region versus more than 90 hotel closures in mid-February.
Marriott reports that occupancy in Greater China rose to approximately 20% in
the first week of April.

In North America and Europe, however, occupancy is hovering
at or below 10%. Marriott has closed more than 870 hotels in North America, approximately
16% of its supply, with more closures expected to follow. About 79% of
Marriott’s European hotels are closed, totaling around 500 properties. 

In the Middle East and Africa region, Marriott has roughly
150 hotels temporarily closed — 54% of Marriott’s properties in the region — while
in the Caribbean and Latin America, operations at nearly 200 hotels — 69% of
Marriott’s properties in the market — are suspended.

Source: Read Full Article